Comments on: Repeal Prop 8 Leadership Summit Recap http://www.theliberaloc.com/2009/07/27/repeal-prop-8-leadership-summit-recap/ Challenging Orange County's right-wing noise machine Sat, 20 Mar 2010 07:40:06 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Misha Houser http://www.theliberaloc.com/2009/07/27/repeal-prop-8-leadership-summit-recap/comment-page-1/#comment-40339 Misha Houser Tue, 28 Jul 2009 06:19:03 +0000 http://www.theliberaloc.com/?p=9045#comment-40339 Lester, I am also a grassroots activist. I walk and knock, phonebank, and do whatever needs to be done to get voters to show up at the polls. Just to clarify on the definition of leader, every grassroots movement that is successful has a leader or group of leaders. Harvey Milk was a grassroots leader. Saturday, John Henning, of Love Honor Cherish demonstrated that he is a leader...and I would consider him to be a grassroots activist. There's nothing elitist about that. He is willing to put himself out there and get beat up for his stand on marriage equality. My point is that unless SOMEONE emerges as the leader, we're going to talk ourselves to death and get nowhere. If we're going to win, SOMEONE, or a group of someones must put together a winning campaign. The problem we have right now is that we haven't moved the center of gravity sufficiently to enable anyone to actually take charge and run a decent campaign. I for one am fully supportive of the four tenets and pray that somehow we get to a place where leadership emerges that knows how the hell to run a campaign. We need someone who knows how to run a field campaign, do outreach to communities of color and faith, and actually campaign outside of our base. Lester, I am also a grassroots activist. I walk and knock, phonebank, and do whatever needs to be done to get voters to show up at the polls.

Just to clarify on the definition of leader, every grassroots movement that is successful has a leader or group of leaders. Harvey Milk was a grassroots leader. Saturday, John Henning, of Love Honor Cherish demonstrated that he is a leader…and I would consider him to be a grassroots activist.

There’s nothing elitist about that. He is willing to put himself out there and get beat up for his stand on marriage equality.

My point is that unless SOMEONE emerges as the leader, we’re going to talk ourselves to death and get nowhere. If we’re going to win, SOMEONE, or a group of someones must put together a winning campaign. The problem we have right now is that we haven’t moved the center of gravity sufficiently to enable anyone to actually take charge and run a decent campaign.

I for one am fully supportive of the four tenets and pray that somehow we get to a place where leadership emerges that knows how the hell to run a campaign. We need someone who knows how to run a field campaign, do outreach to communities of color and faith, and actually campaign outside of our base.

]]> By: Chris Prevatt http://www.theliberaloc.com/2009/07/27/repeal-prop-8-leadership-summit-recap/comment-page-1/#comment-40338 Chris Prevatt Tue, 28 Jul 2009 04:39:52 +0000 http://www.theliberaloc.com/?p=9045#comment-40338 Lester, I am one of those grassroots activists who moved to a leadership role. I speak not from a position as an elitist, but rather a position of experience. If you feel that the grassroots is all it takes to win then I guess you will have to learn from experience. Brian, The voter demographic for mid-term elections are lower turnout and more conservative. There is zero evidence that there has been a significant change in voter opinion on marriage equality in our favor. Rallies and demonstrations do not demonstrate a sea change in opinion. No one is saying that victory in 2010 is impossible. It is simply a reality that we have a better chance of winning during a presidential election year and more time will enable us to gain stronger support. I want to win, I do not want to see our community spend a fortune and lose again. We can do this the hard way or the smart way. 2010 is the hard way. So damn the experts, damn the polls,damn the icebergs, full speed ahead. Lester, I am one of those grassroots activists who moved to a leadership role. I speak not from a position as an elitist, but rather a position of experience. If you feel that the grassroots is all it takes to win then I guess you will have to learn from experience.

Brian,

The voter demographic for mid-term elections are lower turnout and more conservative. There is zero evidence that there has been a significant change in voter opinion on marriage equality in our favor.

Rallies and demonstrations do not demonstrate a sea change in opinion. No one is saying that victory in 2010 is impossible. It is simply a reality that we have a better chance of winning during a presidential election year and more time will enable us to gain stronger support.

I want to win, I do not want to see our community spend a fortune and lose again. We can do this the hard way or the smart way. 2010 is the hard way. So damn the experts, damn the polls,damn the icebergs, full speed ahead.

]]> By: Brian http://www.theliberaloc.com/2009/07/27/repeal-prop-8-leadership-summit-recap/comment-page-1/#comment-40337 Brian Tue, 28 Jul 2009 04:21:27 +0000 http://www.theliberaloc.com/?p=9045#comment-40337 2010 is better as it will be a gubernatorial election campaign. We have 2 strong democratic candidates for governor that are both pro-equality: Newsome and Brown. Both will be great spokespeople for a new ballot initiative, something sorely lacking last year. If we wait to 2012 we will be in a presidential election year with the democratic candidate (obama) being anti-equality. They will run ads using him and drive out the homophobic vote again. I say if not 2010 then just sit back and hope for a court victory or wait till 2014. We can't win with Obama at the top of the ballot. He has been poison for our community. 2010 is better as it will be a gubernatorial election campaign. We have 2 strong democratic candidates for governor that are both pro-equality: Newsome and Brown. Both will be great spokespeople for a new ballot initiative, something sorely lacking last year. If we wait to 2012 we will be in a presidential election year with the democratic candidate (obama) being anti-equality. They will run ads using him and drive out the homophobic vote again. I say if not 2010 then just sit back and hope for a court victory or wait till 2014. We can’t win with Obama at the top of the ballot. He has been poison for our community.

]]> By: Lester http://www.theliberaloc.com/2009/07/27/repeal-prop-8-leadership-summit-recap/comment-page-1/#comment-40335 Lester Tue, 28 Jul 2009 02:07:51 +0000 http://www.theliberaloc.com/?p=9045#comment-40335 This is not so much a report as an argument for one particular point of view. No one bused in their "supporters." The vote took so long to be taken because those who oppose an initiative did not want to have it at all. And where do you get off deciding who is and who is not a "leader." That kind of elitist, exclusionary attitude is what doomed the last campaign and it is disrespectful to the grassroots activist that are carrying the brunt of this movement. This is not so much a report as an argument for one particular point of view. No one bused in their “supporters.” The vote took so long to be taken because those who oppose an initiative did not want to have it at all. And where do you get off deciding who is and who is not a “leader.” That kind of elitist, exclusionary attitude is what doomed the last campaign and it is disrespectful to the grassroots activist that are carrying the brunt of this movement.

]]> By: Misha Houser http://www.theliberaloc.com/2009/07/27/repeal-prop-8-leadership-summit-recap/comment-page-1/#comment-40334 Misha Houser Tue, 28 Jul 2009 01:33:30 +0000 http://www.theliberaloc.com/?p=9045#comment-40334 Jordan, Chris is leaning 2012 and I'm leaning 2010 IF we have the four tenets proposed by Rick Jacobs of the Courage Campaign in place...that's not one-sided. We both have complex views of the issue and both of us believe that it will be on the ballot in 2010. If by one-sided you mean that we thought the meeting was poorly run and frustrating to both the 2010 and 2012 supporters, then yeah, I guess maybe it is one-sided. I thought the meeting was painful and accomplished little. We didn't come away with a governing body, nor did we come up with a strategy...all we managed to accomplish is a straw poll. I'm concerned that we're doing a lot of talking and not seeing much action. Those who are in favor of 2010 should be concerned too, because without that leadership, the clock will run out and we will be out of options. Jordan,
Chris is leaning 2012 and I’m leaning 2010 IF we have the four tenets proposed by Rick Jacobs of the Courage Campaign in place…that’s not one-sided.

We both have complex views of the issue and both of us believe that it will be on the ballot in 2010. If by one-sided you mean that we thought the meeting was poorly run and frustrating to both the 2010 and 2012 supporters, then yeah, I guess maybe it is one-sided.

I thought the meeting was painful and accomplished little. We didn’t come away with a governing body, nor did we come up with a strategy…all we managed to accomplish is a straw poll. I’m concerned that we’re doing a lot of talking and not seeing much action.

Those who are in favor of 2010 should be concerned too, because without that leadership, the clock will run out and we will be out of options.

]]> By: Chris Prevatt http://www.theliberaloc.com/2009/07/27/repeal-prop-8-leadership-summit-recap/comment-page-1/#comment-40333 Chris Prevatt Tue, 28 Jul 2009 01:16:04 +0000 http://www.theliberaloc.com/?p=9045#comment-40333 Jordan, Not sure I understand your point. If you have a different perspective to present, please do so. Jordan,

Not sure I understand your point. If you have a different perspective to present, please do so.

]]> By: Jordan http://www.theliberaloc.com/2009/07/27/repeal-prop-8-leadership-summit-recap/comment-page-1/#comment-40332 Jordan Tue, 28 Jul 2009 01:05:33 +0000 http://www.theliberaloc.com/?p=9045#comment-40332 One-sided? No - not at all! One-sided? No – not at all!

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